Shop for a Cause, International Women’s Day Edition! Stunning (and Affordable) Jewelry Helps Girls Around the World

Today is International Women’s Day, a day meant to show respect and appreciation to our fellow females around the world. And so on this occasion, we’re highlighting the work of one woman who is doing just that.

Meet Courtney Sims, a Cali-based jewelry designer and former model who found success with Moschino and MAC. A few years ago she decided she wanted to have a lasting, positive impact on the lives of girls around the world, so last year she launched her own jewelry line and website, Matterial Fix, featuring her highly affordable modern designs (starting at $28).

Each collection is inspired by travels to a specific region of the world, which so far includes Peru and India, and 10 percent of sales go to organizations that empower girls and young women in those countries. Currently, her India collection benefits Freedom Firm, which is dedicated to ending child prostitution and rescuing and rehabilitating girls who’ve been forced to work in brothels in the country. Her Peruvian collection provides support for Peruvian Hearts, which educates and empowers disenfranchised and orphan girls throughout the country.

Why girls? “We believe that if you empower a girl, you can change her life and generations to come,” says Sims. “By investing in their economic potential through education, by delaying marriage and teen pregnancy, and by standing against sex trafficking, the cycle of poverty can be broken.”

Right now there are about 40 pieces on the site, with new collections launching every six months. Sims will also be appearing at New York’s Henri Bendel in April showcasing her line in person and spreading the word about the message behind her work. “The ability to dream is something I want to restore in the lives of girls who have had it taken away from them,” she says. “The women these girls become are going to shape our world. We have a responsibly to empower them.”